Machine for graining and otherwise ornamenting wood.



No. 005,050. PATENTED NOV. 20, 1905.

0 H. 0. JOHNSON.

MACHINE FOR GRAINING AND OTHERWISE ORNAMENTING WOOD.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 16, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

ma s,

No. 805,858 PATENTED NOV. 28, 1905.

I H. O. JOHNSON.

MACHINE FOR GRAINING AND OTHERWISE ORNAMENTING WOOD.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 16, 1904.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY C. JOHNSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

MACHINE FOR GRAINING AND OTHERWISE ORNAMENTING WOOD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 28, 1905.

Application filed May 16, 1904. Serial No. 208,267.

To ctZZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY O. JOHNSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Graining and Otherwise Ornamenting Wood, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to a machine by which various designs may be printed upon wood and similar substances.

My chief aim is to provide an improved machine by which the cheaper varieties of wood may be grained to imitate or simulate the more expensive varieties; but the inven' tion is equally applicable to machines for otherwise ornamenting wood by printing a design upon its surface.

For the purpose of this application the invention will be described in its application to the artificial graining of wood, but with the understanding that I reserve the right to its exclusive use for printing any design or figure, the imitation of the grain of wood being simply one species of design.

I am aware that machines for this purpose have long been in use, and hence declare my present invention to reside in the novel features hereinafter described. One of its objects is to provide a machine having a printing-roll that will make a cleaner and more well-defined imprint than is possible with the printing-rolls of graining-machines heretofore used, especially when the printing is done on a strip of molding or, in fact,-upon any surface that is not both flat and perpendicular to the direction of the printing-roll.

Another object of the invention is to avoid indenting or rupturing the surface of the wood being grained, even to the slight extent incident to the use of the numerous fine projections that form the printing-surfaces of printing-rolls, such as were heretofore used for this purpose.

Another object of the invention is to produce upon the wood an imprint which is in relief instead of intaglio as the work leaves the printing-roll, so that when it is subjected to a polisher the printed surfaces, as well as the intervening surfaces, will be polished.

Another object of the invention is to pro- Vide a machine by which these several results pressure of themay be obtained not only with a high degree of excellence, but also at a high rate of speed and with but little manual labor, (and that little of a cheap class,) to the end that superior imitations of expensive woods may be produced at a very low cost.

All of these objectsl accomplish by the use of an inelastic printing-roll, preferably metal,the surface of which is complementary to the surface of the strip and has the design depressed therein (intagliol instead of raised thereon (has-relief) as heretofore, the design being wrought in numerous narrow depressions (simulating line and stipple, if this effect is desired)engraved or otherwise made in the face of the roll, in connection with means for supplying the roll with ink, paint, stain, or other liquid with which the imprint is to be made, (the term paint is hereinafter used for the sake of brevity,) and means for removing the surplus paint from the surface of the roll between the depressions, leaving the latter filled after the manner of plate printing. The board, molding, or strip (the term strip is hereinafter used for the sake of brevity) to be grained is passed between this printingroll and a bed-roll arranged beneath it, and one of the rolls is driven by some suitable means, so that the strip is fed along and subjected to the action of the printing-roll. The printing-roll is held down with considerable pressure, so as to force the soft wood more or less into the depressions, whereby the paint is not only taken from said depressions, but in addition to this the surfaces covered by the paint are raised. As before intimated, this raising of the printed surfaces brings them within reach of the polisher, so that they as well as the surrounding surfaces are polished, whereas if the imprint were depressed only the surrounding surfaces would be reached by the polisher and the imprint would be left comparatively dull.

To remove the surplus paint, the machine is provided with a wiper consisting of a body of absorbent material-such as waste, felt, wool, sponge, or the likeand means for holding it firmly in contact with the descending side of the printing-roll at a point ahead of the point at which the paint is applied and behind the point at which the printing-roll contacts with the strip, regard being had to the direction of the rotation. For this purpose I prefer to use a device in the nature of a presser-bar or hood, between which and the roll the absorbent body is tamped or packed. I desire to have it understood, however, that the invention is not limited to any particular means for holding this body of absorbent material, nor to any particular means for applying the paint to the printing-roll, (a brush held in the hand of the operator will answer the purpose,) nor to the means for holding the printing-roll down with the necessary pressure to produce the above-described results, nor to the means for feeding the work through the machine, nor to any of the many other adjuncts that are necessary in a complete machine.

The essential features of a machine embodying the invention are: the printing-roll having the characteristics above described and a wiper for removing the surplus paint from the surface thereof, and all of the other features, including the means for supplying the roll wit-h paint, are auxiliary thereto and can be supplied by any skilled mechanic.

In the accompanying drawings, which are made a part of this specification, Figure 1 is vertical longitudinal section of a machine embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section thereof on the line 2 2, Fig. 1, viewed in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 3 is a plan view thereof. Fig. 4 is a View of a fragment of the printing-roll of full size and having a profile appropriate to a molding. Figs. 5 to 12, inclusive, are enlarged views in elevation and in section of fragments of theprinting-roll, showing in detail the characteristics of the depressions in which the design is wrought.

A represents the printing-roll; a, the shaft thereof; B, the bed-roll located beneath the printing-roll; b, the shaft thereof. C is a device for supplying the printing-roll with paint, and D the wiper, all of which parts have the necessary accessories and are supported by a suitable frame. The roll-shafts run in suitable boxes, and the printing-roll may be given the necessary pressure by screws A engaging its boxes. One novel characteristic of the printing-roll is its sinuous profile, by which is meant that in axial planes its peripheral line deviates in whole or in part from a straight line parallel with its axis. In this sinuous surface the design is wrought in numerous depressions which are narrow, shallow, and of the shape necessary to produce the desired effect. Some are elongated, and for simulating the grain of wood these elongated depressions are disposed circumferentially. The depressions are piaced wherever necessary in order to produce the design, regardless of the character of the surface where they chance to fall and whether this surface be curved or straight and, if straight, Whether it be disposed parallel with the axis of the roll or at an angle thereto or whether it be at a corner formed by the intersection of two surfaces. In some instances portions of the surface may approximate a radius of the cylinder; but even these may have their portions of the design and will make clear impressions upon the strip. This would be impossible with a printing-roll having the design wrought thereon in relief. Other' characteristics of the roll are shown in Figs. 5 to 12, inclusive.

In Figs. 5, 6, l1, and 12 line depressions a of two different types are shown on an enlarged scale, in Figs. 7 and 8 stipple depressions are shown at a, and in Figs. 9 and 10 line and stipple depressions are shown at (1/ All of these depressions may be made by means of a chisel held in the hand and struck with a hammer. As these depressions pass the wiper the surface of the roll between them is wiped clean or substantially clean of paint, while the depressions are left full. The printing of the design is therefore done by the depressions and not by the high surfaces,(the little paint remaining on the high surfaces serving merely to tint the background of the design,) and in this respect the printing-roll of the present invention is precisely the reverse of printing-rolls heretofore used for this work. In rolls heretofore used the depressions which are intended to leave corresponding portions of the strip clean,or substantially so, are supposed to be free from paint, but in practice they become filled with paint and small particles of foreign substances and this results in blurred and imperfect impressions. VVit-h my roll the surfaces which correspond with the surfaces of the strip that are to be left free or substantially free from paint may be wiped substantially clean, leaving paint only in the depressions, and the imprint therefore corresponds exactly and in every detail with said depressions. In fact, as the strip leaves the machine it resembles a strip of hard wood of the variety being imitated after the filling process. The filling process accentuates the grain by filling the pores with a dark paint and slightly tinting the high surfaces, while the present machine prints imitations of the depressions in dark shades and slightly tints the intervening spaces.

For applying paint to the printing-roll I have shown a receptacle 0 for containing the paint and a train of contacting rolls C", the first of which dips in the paint in the receptacle and the last of which contacts with the ascending side of the printing-roll at a point above the horizontal plane of its axis. This is a familiar device and I make no claim to any of its details. On the other hand, in its broadest aspect the invention is not limited to any particular means for applying the paint to the roll, and for some classes of work I prefer to apply it by means of a brush held in the hand of the operator. If a series of IIO rolls are used, the last one should conform more or less accurately with the profile of the printing-roll, and each of the other rolls should be substantially complementary to the next. Hence when the profile of the printing-roll is complicated there are obvious difficulties in the way of using a train of rolls for supplying it with paint and obvious advantage in the use of the brush. While the construction of the device for applying the paint forms no part of the present invention,

its location with respect to the printing-roll is of importance. It will be understood that the paint ordinarily used for graining is thin and flows freely. It is therefore necessary to apply it at such a point that it will not flood the face of the roll and flow onto the strip excepting as intended. By applying it at the point shown in the drawings it is carried upward by the ascending side of the roll, and before it reaches a point where it could flow onto and soil the work the surplus is removed by the wiper. Even after passing the wiper, which is located on the descending side of the roll, it has no chance to flow out of the depressions, because the surface of the roll at this point is moving in the direction in which gravity tends to make the paint flow, so that the motion of the roll overcomes the effect of gravity on the paint. In this connection it is important to note that the bed-roll is located beneath the printing-roll. If it were located above the printing-roll, the effect of gravity upon the paint in the depressions would be augmented by the inertia of the paint, and the tendency of the paint to flow out of the depressions would thereby be increased.

The absorbent pad or body D is tamped firmly between the printing roll and the presser-bar or hood D, so that it conforms accurately to the profile of the roll and effectually removes the surplus paint from the high surfaces, as already explained. This presser-bar or hood has a curved side which is eccentric with respect to the roll, and its lower margin conforms with more or less exactness to the profile of the roll. At its ends the bar has cheek-pieces cl, which project over the ends of the roll and confine the pad. Setscrcws E or other suitable devices may be useld for adjusting the wiper relatively to the ro In Figs. 1, 2, and 3 I have shown a cylindrical roll which is adapted to print on a flat surface, and in Fig. 4 I have shown a fragment of a roll having a sinuous profile adapted to a molding of corresponding design. In

any event in preparing the roll it is first turned to a complement of the surface to be printed and then dressed off, so as to be perfectly smooth. It is then subjected to the action of the tool for producing the design. For this purpose I prefer to use a chisel. In Figs. 5

to 10 are shown three effects each produced by a single operation of one and the same chisel. This chisel has a toothed or serrated cutting edge. When it is driven into the roll to a depth beyond its teeth, asingle elongated depression, such as is represented in Figs. 5 and 6, will be produced. At the surface of the roll the depression will be continuous, while the bottom of the depression will be defined by a zigzag line, resulting in a number of small coves or indentations. When the chisel is driven in a depth less than the depth of its teeth, a succession of small minute depressions will be produced, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, and the depressions will diminish from the center toward each end of the series. This is due to the curvature of the surface of the roll, which is circular in planes perpendicular to its axis. This produces the stipple effect. In the above operations it is assumed that the cutting edge of the chisel is presented to the roll radially. When it is presented in the direction of a chord of an arc of the roll and is driven in so as to bury the teeth at one side only, the effect shown at Fig. 9 and Fig. 10 is producedin other words, both line and stipple; line atone end and stipple at the other end of the cut. The depression shown in Figs. 11 and 12 is produced by a chisel. having in one face flutes or corrugations extending to the cutting edge. In each instance where a line or elongated depression is made it has coves or pockets resulting from the teeth or corrugations, and these serve the double purpose of preventing the wiper from removing the paint and of preventing the ink from flowing out of the depressions by gravity. A sort of capillary action is produced.

I am aware that in the art of plate-printing and printing on fabrics it has been proposed to use a cylindrical printing-roll having a design wrought by numerous depressions in the surface thereof; but I am not aware that it has ever been proposed to grain or otherwise ornament wood or other substance by printing thereon a design which is wrought in numerous depressions in the surface of a roll having a sinuous profile.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a printing-roll having a sinuous profile and having a design wrought in numerous narrow depressions in the face thereof, means for applying paint to the roll and a wiper contacting with the roll at a point ahead of the point at which the paint is applied, said wiper having a body of absorbent material conforming to the profile of the roll and means for holding said body in place, substantially as described.

2. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a printing-roll having a design wrought in numerous narrow depressions in the face thereof, means for applying being shaped to provide a wedge-shaped paint to the roll, and a wiper contacting with pocket between it and the roll, substantially the roll at a pointahead of the point at which I as described.

the paint is applied, said Wiper havinga body HENRY C. JOHNSON. of absorbent material conforming to the sur- Witnesses:

face of the roll and a pl'esser bar or shoe for i L. M. HOPKINS,

holding said body in place, said bar or shoe I JESSIE E. LITSEY. 

